21 Mar 2020; MEMO: Two men have been arrested by the authorities in Saudi Arabia after posting videos online showing them drinking disinfectant and sterilising liquid that is unfit for human consumption, and thus misleading others into believing that it can protect them from the coronavirus.
The men, both Saudi citizens in their 30s, filmed the videos independently of each other and were arrested on the orders of the Saudi Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution in the cities of Riyadh and Qassim.
“With reference to the videos circulated on social media,” explained Lieutenant Colonels Shaker Al-Tuwaijri and Bader Al-Suhaibani, spokesmen for the police in Riyadh and Qassim respectively, “two men appeared to boast and pretend to drink a solution of a highly concentrated detergent, and broadcast them without regard for the consequences and seriousness of the effect on the public.”
The arrests were made because the action was against Saudi Arabian law and the religion of Islam, said prosecutors, as it was intentional exposure to the risk of serious bodily harm or even death. It could also, they said, influence children to imitate the actions and harm themselves in the process, hence the charges of inciting behaviour which would harm the health of the public.
With both men having been referred to the Saudi court system, they can be charged under Article 6 of the Kingdom’s Anti-Cyber Crimes Law and also for violating the country’s Child Protection Laws. This means that they could potentially face up to 5 years in prison as well as fines of up to 3 million Saudi Riyals ($800,000).
In recent weeks, Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region have been taking measures to try to stem the spread of the virus, including the closure of schools and universities, the cancellation of congregational prayers at mosques and private sector employees being ordered to take 15 days off in order to self-quarantine. International travel to many parts of the world has also banned.
So far, there are said to have been no deaths in the Kingdom caused by the coronavirus, but there have been 274 confirmed cases; eight people have recovered. Around the world, there are almost 253,000 cases of infection as of today and over 10,400 deaths.
